Vik is a national touring comic based in Chicago. He’s opened for both Roy Wood Jr. & Michelle Wolf of The Daily Show, and performs regularly at Zanies Comedy Club & the Laugh Factory in Chicago. He’s done a number of festivals all over the country, most notably: Laughing Devil in NYC (2017), Gilda’s LaughFest in Grand Rapids (2017), San Diego Comedy festival (2017 semi finalist), & Cleveland Comedy festival (2016 finalist). He’s a co-producer of one of the largest independent comedy shows in Chicago (Laugh Near Minimalist Furniture) and founding member of Team Us Comedy who produce unique shows all over Chicago.

Josh Ballew

Joshua Ballew is a comedian based in Milwaukee, WI who has been writing and performing since 2013. A mix of personal experiences and social criticism, Ballew’s comedy has been called “humorous” and ranges from observations on racial identity to why Girl Scout cookies taste so good.

Christopher SchmidtChristopher Schmidt is a Milwaukee based comedian who grew up too obsessed with cartoons and professional wrestling to have any hope of a smooth transition into adulthood. In college he chose to major in creative writing and doing standup is his way of pursuing that mistake to its bitterest end. Crafting his passions for wordplay and storytelling into controversial diatribes about cover bands and tales of being comedically one-upped by a 6th grader, Chris lives to bask in the moment between the establishment of the set up and the delivery of the punch line.

Keith McGill (Headliner)

Keith McGill comic

Keith McGill is clever, insightful, and a little bit eye-opening. His comedy is truth with a twist. Indianapolis’ NUVO said, “Keith McGill has a style that is smooth and temperate, and lacks any gaudy gimmicks or catch phrases, making him one of the best stand-up acts within earshot… His material is positive and PG-13, yet still intelligently critical of the comical absurdities [of life]…he’s impossible not to like.” Keith is on SIRIUS XM, and his latest CD, PROFESSIONAL BROKE PERSON, is available on iTunes. In addition to doing cruises, Keith has appeared on BET, CMT, LAUGHS on FOX and is a Bob and Tom Show favorite, as well as a much sought-after entertainer for corporate events. Most recently, Keith was a finalist in the STAND-UP NBC competition.

10pm at Underground Collaborative

The late night Friday show features another great line up of comedy you definitely want to see! Check out some top stand up acts from Chicago in this hilarious showcase.

Melissa is a Chicago based stand up comic whose sets deal with relationships, trying to find one, feminism, race, and her ridiculous life having lots of pets and guy friends, most of which she is trying to date. Her sprinkled in vulgarity is just enough to let you know although she is very sweet, she is also hella fun. She has opened for Loni Love, Godfrey, and performed at The Improv, Zanies, Jokes and Notes, and other clubs around the Midwest. Melissa was the first female to win Snubfest and has been a part of The Burbank Comedy Festival. Find out more at www.MelissaRichelle.com

Mike Wiley

Born in Chicago, Mike Wiley has been in the stand-up comedy game since 2002 and emerged from the same Chicago comedy generation that gave rise to some of the most talented/well-known comedians in the industry today. As well as Chicago, Mike Wiley regularly performs all around the Midwest and has opened for a variety of acts such as Doug Stanhope, Josh Blue, The Latin Kings of Comedy, and platinum selling industrial heavy metal band Powerman 5000.

Sam Priest

Originally a southern Indiana boy, now based out of Chicago, Samuel has entertained audiences all throughout the Midwest with a smug, sarcastic little delivery of rude thoughts and sad stories and a few points that aren’t worth making. If it weren’t for his redeeming dimples, he’d be fairly unlikeable. Samuel has trained at the Second City and iO theaters and his work has appeared in the Paper Machete, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and Bust.com.

Prateek Srivastava (Headliner)

Midwest based comedian Prateek Srivastava tirelessly performs all over the country. Prateek recently performed at the NBC Break Out Festival at Second City, he has also appeared at 2017’s San Francisco Sketchfest, the Laugh Your Asheville Comedy Festival, the Desi Comedy Festival, and the Arch City Comedy festival. In 2014 Prateek was selected as a Chicago Finalist in NBC’s Stand Up for Diversity Talent Search. In 2016 he had the rare distinction of performing stand up comedy at the Chicago Improv Festival. He has performed alongside nationally touring headliners Maz Jobrani, Ryan Singer, Stewart Huff, Sammy Obeid, and Dwayne Kennedy.

Prateek is a founder and producer of Simmer Brown, a comedy collective that has been selling out shows since May 2015. Prateek also co-produces the food based show Snack Attack Comedy. Prateek has been featured in Time Out Chicago, Chicago Sun Times, Chicago Reader, Chicago Tribune and has appeared on WGN Radio and NPR.

A former cast member of 100 Proof Comedy at Comedysportz, Prateek was also a senior writer/producer for the sketch show Talk Hard, which was voted Best Sketch Show by the Chicago Reader.

Prateek thanks you for reading his bio and thanks you for not realizing that he’s speaking in the 3rd person right now!